College Basketball in Indiana Reaches New Heights

College basketball is popular all around the world, but especially in Indiana teams. Indiana University, Butler University and Purdue University have improved their records already in the season. According to Lebanon High School students, with their current success. All three Indiana teams could make it into the NCAA tournament.

“Butler right now is ranked 13th in the Top 25 and they are having a fun season. I really enjoy watching them play because they are working better as a team this year and their chemistry is what is making them successful,” said junior Cameron Herald.

Butler’s record is 16-3 right now, with impressive victories like upsetting the number 1 ranked Villanova and number 7 ranked Creighton. Herald has been a fan of Butler since middle school when he met the head coach at a basketball camp.

“They are an older team that has a good mix. They have mostly seniors so that would usually make me nervous for years forward, but they have always done well at recruiting in the past,” said Herald.

Just like Butler, Purdue has had a successful season so far. Their record this year is 15-4 and they are ranked 21th in the Top 25 for NCAA basketball.

“Purdue has been playing really well this year. A lot of it has to do with their big, tall players, Caleb Swanigan and Isaac Haas. Swanigan has been playing better than anyone in the league with his double-doubles. Also, the guards are making their threes and Ryan Cline is getting good points off the bench,” said junior Ben Johnson.

Johnson has been a fan of Purdue for a while and enjoys seeing how well the team plays defense and seeing how they improve. He believes if Purdue can play like they did against Villanova and Wisconsin, then they stand a better chance in the NCAA tournament in March.

“IU has been very successful this year because of the leadership of Tom Crean, head coach, as well as some of the players playing really well such as OG Anunoby and James Blackman Jr. This team is a younger team since they only have one senior so they really are doing a great job at working together and have that drive to be the best they can be,” said junior John Lasley.

Indiana University’s record is 13-6 right now, and Lasley believes if they play to their potential and work together then they could go far in the NCAA tournament.

Indiana basketball has had a year of success in the sport. Purdue University, Indiana University and Butler University all have more wins than losses for the season. They all could stand a chance in the tournament and are coming along in their seasons with records in their favor.